


Reclamation

by sal_si_puedes



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Accidental Voyeurism, Angst, Angst and Drama, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, POV Third Person, Sappy, Suicidal Thoughts, meantions of beheading
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:07:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26235376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sal_si_puedes/pseuds/sal_si_puedes
Summary: After a mission nearly goes more awry than usual, Nicky needs to make sure that Joe is okay. (Nile’s POV.)
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Joe/Nicky
Comments: 26
Kudos: 257





	Reclamation

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BaronSamedi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BaronSamedi/gifts).



> Myri persuaded me to watch the movie, and I did. tumblr did the rest. Thank you [baronsamediswife](https://baronsamediswife.tumblr.com/) for dragging me into this... :D

„It’s usually the other way round,“ Andy murmurs, leaning a little closer towards Nile at their improvised dining table, an old blanket over a rickety crate in the middle of the cave’s floor. There’s food, bread and cheese, and there’s wine, too, and water, and even though they’re not going to have real beds tonight, there are some mattresses in the back of the cave at its narrow end that are not too moldy and not too damp, and a couple of blankets as well. Her eyes dart across the table to Joe and Nicky, and Nile’s eyes follow hers.

Nicky tears another chunk of bread from one of the loaves and hands it to Joe, then he cuts a thick slice from the cheese, pins it with the tip of his knife and holds it out for Joe to take. He pours some more wine into their mugs, first for Joe, then for himself, too. His fingers shake a little as he raises his mug and takes a long swig. They shake a little less when he sets it down onto the table and reaches for Joe, running his fingers through his hair, smiling wistfully.

“It’s usually Joe who fuzzes,” Andy adds quietly, and an amused grin spreads over her face. “But today, Nicky got scared.” She pulls a face at Nicky, and Nicky just rolls his eyes at her before he turns back to Joe and lets his fingers trail down his cheek until they reach his lips. 

Joe smiles and catches Nicky’s hand in his. He brings it to his mouth and places a soft kiss on Nicky’s knuckles. There’s something he mouths against them, some barely whispered words, but Nile can’t understand any of them, maybe they’re Italian. Or Arabic. Or just not meant for anyone but Nicky, the way they make his lips curl into a tentative smile that only lasts for a couple of seconds. 

It goes on like that, Nicky fuzzing over Joe for the rest of the night, constantly touching him, bringing him food and drink, and letting his fingers casually run along Joe’s neck, gently brushing over the invisible line the sword’s blade had drawn on Joe’s skin when the terrorist had placed it there, letting it rest there for a few heartbeats, carefully taking aim before raising it and going in for the kill.

The sword had already been on the downswing, Nile remembers, when they’d barged in, Joe’s hands bound behind his back, his skin still sticky with blood, and the movement had been so swift, so fast, that it had almost been too late. But in the end, Nicky had managed to fire a shot at the henchman just in time, hitting him in the middle of his forehead, the force of the blow propelling him backwards and away from Joe. His sword had fallen from his grip and hit the ground before his lifeless body had. 

None of them has been beheaded before, not ever, Andy explains to Nile, and that’s why Nicky had been so scared and so shaken afterwards. He hadn’t even tried to hide it very much; it had run that deep. The way his hands had fumbled with Joe’s blindfold and the rope around his wrists, the way he had yanked Joe to his feet and patted him down for injuries, the way he had pulled him into his arms when he had found him clear, the way his knees had almost given in and Joe had to hold him upright then – everything had told Nile how serious the incident had been, how profoundly it had shaken Nicky. Andy’s words were only confirming what Nile already knew.

When Joe cups Nicky’s jaw with one hand, letting his thumb brush over Nicky’s cheek slowly and tenderly, and when he leans in for a kiss, Nile’s heart constricts. When Nicky nods, another small smile spreading on his face for the briefest of moments, her chest tightens. When they rise from their chairs and slowly walk over to the back of the cave, to one of the ragged mattresses, Joe one step in front of Nicky, Nicky’s hand in his, when they leave the table like that without ever looking back, Nile bites her lips.

“It can get tough, sometimes,” Andy says, and for a moment Nile thinks she’s going to reach out and touch her arm, but then she doesn’t. “When you love someone that much.”

Nile turns her head to face Andy, and when their gazes meet, Andy rolls her eyes. “Turns you into one sappy idiot, it seems.” 

Nile’s eyes follow the two men as they almost disappear in the half-darkness at the end of the cave. She makes sure to drag her and Andy’s mattress a little further away from where Joe and Nicky have settled down on theirs when they lie down for the night. She falls asleep to soft whispers and gentle murmurs, the rare warm chuckle and the sound of fingers moving over cloth and skin. The nip of lips against each other.

She wakes up to the sound of a sigh and a constant stream of murmured words.

“Sono qui, Nicolò,” Joe says, and “Sto bene.” _I’m okay._ “Io sono salvo.” And softly, as if they are words from a song, “Va bene, tesoro. Non aver paura. Andrà tutto bene, andrà bene. Sono qui. Sono qui. Sono qui...”

There’s another voice, frantic, desperate. “Yusuf,” it says, and it sounds like nothing Nile has ever heard. “Yusuf, sei vivo, sei vivo, grazie, oh, grazie…”

Next to her, Andy sits up and wraps her arms around her knees.

“We shouldn’t be listening to this,” Nile whispers, letting her eyes flutter shut. “It’s not—we shouldn’t—”

“They don’t care,” Andy murmurs, and Nile opens her eyes again to find her staring into the growing darkness. “They don’t care, and they’re probably not going to notice anyway. They’re too—It’s just them now,” she adds after a short silence. “You know, if one of them dies, the other wouldn’t even be able to kill himself. He’d just be… left alone. Forever.”

“Voglio…” Nicky murmurs, and his voice, even though he takes a very shaky breath, sounds even more urgent when he speaks again after. “Voglio vederti. I want to see you, _Yusuf_ …”

“I haven’t heard him use that name in ages,” Andy whispers, and Nile can hear a hint of amused bewilderment in her voice. “Must be really serious, then.”

“Si, Nicolò, si, sono qui, amore mio, sono qui…”

The movements in the darkness become faster, more desperate. Nile can hear how jeans buttons are being popped open and zippers undone. She can hear how feet kick off shoes and how legs struggle free from their confinements. Bodies shift, and next to Nile Andy lies down again and turns to lie facing the wall.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m going back to sleep,” she murmurs, and even though such a thing isn’t possible Nile thinks she can hear her closing her eyes. “Remember? Catch some when you can.”

Nile can’t though. She can’t go back to sleep, and she can’t keep her eyes closed either. They’re mercilessly drawn to the shadowy shapes in the almost dark a few feet over, and she does so just in time to see Joe pulling Nicky’s t-shirt over his head and running his hands down Nicky’s bare back. 

Nicky is half-kneeling between Joe’s legs, half lying on top of him, propped up on his arms, his hands resting next to Joe’s shoulders. Nile’s eyes follow the line of his spine all the way from the nape of his neck to the globes of his ass. It’s obvious that he’s trying to hold himself still, he’s almost trembling with the effort of it, but it’s equally as obvious how badly he fails. His body won’t let him stay still, his hips won’t let him, they roll and grind against Joe, drawing a low moan from both Joe’s and Nicky’s lungs. 

Nile bites her lips. She can feel the desperation Nicky radiates, and Joe as well. She can feel how their bodies are drawn towards each other, into each other, just like their minds and hearts are. She can feel the love they have for each other, she can feel it inside of her, and it hurts so much her eyes begin to water. 

“Ho bisogno…” Nicky’s hips roll again, and Joe’s hands travel down his back once more until they come to rest on his ass, pulling him against him even closer. “Devo… I have to…”

“Yes,” Joe answers again and again, pulling Nicky down on top of him, wrapping his arms around him, holding him close. “Yes, Nicolò, yes, I’m here, I’m here, you can have me, you can…”

Nile doesn’t know it it’s getting lighter inside the cave or if her eyesight is getting more acute, but she can see more than just shades now. She can see how Nicky’s lips brush against Joe’s, and how Joe catches Nicky’s lower lip between his teeth. She can see how Nicky’s tongue darts out and traces Joe’s lips again and again. She can hear how their movements slow for a moment, their ragged breathing the only sound in the cave.

But then Joe’s back arches, he arches against Nicky, and Nicky moans, and shrouded in that moan is Joe’s name. 

In the almost-darkness Nicky struggles to a kneeling position and reaches between Joe’s legs. Even though his need is so palpable that it almost closes off Nile’s throat, he takes his time working Joe open. Nile can see how he bites his lips and how his body trembles with the almost superhuman effort, but he doesn’t rush it. Soft words of praise and worship keep pouring from his lips, gentle coaxes and tender caresses, and they cover Joe’s skin with the faintest glistening glow. 

Joe’s breathing becomes shallow and hoarse, and he’s writhing underneath Nicky’s words and touches, but Nicky doesn’t stop. His cock stands hard and erect, and from time to time he takes himself in hand, stroking up and down his length a couple of times until he has to let go again lest he gets too close to the edge. 

Nile’s mesmerized. Her heart is beating in her throat, and she’s sure her own breathlessness is loud enough to wake up Andy again if it goes on like this. When Joe’s back arches again, when he draws Nicky’s fingers deeper into his body than Nile would have thought possible, Nile bites the insides of her cheeks. It has to be impossible for Nicky to still hold back. 

But then, in the almost-darkness, Nicky withdraws his fingers from Joe’s body and sits back on his heels, the fingers of his other hand tightly wrapped around his cock.

Joe nods.

Taking a deep breath, Nicky positions himself and guides the tip of his cock to Joe’s entrance. 

Nile can almost feel how Nicky pushes inside, slowly and steadily. He’s _reclaiming_ Joe, and Joe lets him. He opens to Nicky until Nicky has taken him entirely, until there’s nothing left of him, until they’re truly and utterly one.

“Nicolò,” Joe whispers, when Nicky is fully buried inside of him. “My love…”

Nicky’s breathing hitches. This, being inside of Joe like this, is almost too much for him to bear, Nile can feel that. It’s threatening to break him, and Nile can feel each and every single subtle crack. 

“Yes,” Nicky finally says, his voice trembling as much as his body. “God, _yes_! Grazie, thank you, thank you so much…”

Nile doesn’t know how long they stay like that, motionless and locked inside of each other, their hearts beating as one. Time has lost its meaning. Everything has lost its meaning. It’s only them, now. She wants to say something, to scream, to beg them to move, to do something about this, to finally put an end to this, but she can’t. Her words have died in her chest, and her body is spellbound by the devastating intensity of a love so painful and strong it escapes all description. 

“There’s nothing else,” Nicky’s murmured words fill the cave until they’re all there is. “There’s nothing else. Only you.”

“Yes,” Joe kisses against Nicky’s chest, against the hollow of his throat, against his Adam’s apple. “Only you.” His words are an echo of time, a promise that spans centuries, millennia. Eternity. “Always. I’m here. I’m here. Always, always…” His fingers dig into the muscles of Nicky’s cheeks, and his hands pull Nicky upwards a little, and even deeper inside. 

Nicky gasps and holds still for another moment before he finally begins to move. Nile listens to the moans and grunts and whispered words, unintelligible words again, to the sound Nicky’s and Joe’s bodies make as they get closer and closer to the edge. 

Nile can feel their ever-mounting need pulsing through her own entire being, and she has to shove a fist against her mouth to keep quiet. When she closes her eyes, she can feel fingers digging into tensing muscles, she can feel sweat and heat, and there is so much pain, growing and rising, but it never crests. It just builds and builds, and when Nile thinks she can’t take it anymore, the voices begin to sound again, ragged shreds of words, shards of names scattering through the darkness, desperate pleas and helpless cries of longing.

Then, abruptly, a deafening silence. Suspension. A razor’s edge, and Nile’s eyes fly open again.

Nicky comes first, it’s nothing but a breathless pant, then another, and another, and then Joe follows, roughly swallowing around his climax, a sound unlike anything Nile has ever heard. 

She wants to cover her ears, but she can’t. Her fingers are fisted into the mattress, and she can’t pry them loose. There’s nothing she can do but listen to the shallow breathing slowly calming, to the occasional hitching moan (Nicky) and the answering soothing hum (Joe), to the deeper and more even breaths in the end.

“Thank you,” Nicky finally murmurs, quietly, resting his head on Joe’s chest. “I needed that. I needed to feel—” Nile can hear him swallow thickly and take a deep, shaky breath. “I needed to feel _you_. _Us_.”

“I’m here. And I am not going anywhere, Nicolò, my love,” Joe whispers, his fingers brushing over Nicky’s arm, causing him to shiver. “I’m not done with you yet. I promise you; I am not.”

“I will find a way,” Nicky murmurs, and then there is the sound of a very soft kiss. “I will find a way to die. To kill myself when you are, when you do. When you—When I’m—”

“Of course, you will, my love,” Joe says with a faint smile in his words. “There is nothing you can’t do, my brave and brilliant love. You’ll even find a way to beat immortality.”

“I can’t do this without you,” Nicky says after a while, and Joe nods.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

Nile closes her eyes. She’s still just new to all of this, but there’s one decision she makes right there and then. She’s never going to love. If this is how it feels, if it means being ripped to shreds like this right to one’s very core over and over again, she’s not sure she could bear it. 

When Andy returns to the cave in the morning from God knows where she’s disappeared to before Nile woke up, Nile’s sitting at the make-shift table, her muscles still vibrating with residual tension, and she’s not looking at anything or anyone.

“So, what happened after I went back to sleep last night?” Andy asks, raising her eyebrows, and Nile’s eyes briefly dart over to where Joe and Nicky are packing their bags, getting ready to leave. 

Nicky is smiling, and Joe snatches something from his grip before he can bag it to stuff it into his own duffle bag. 

“Thief,” he grins, and nudges Nicky’s upper arm with his fist. “You’re a filthy, sneaky thief.”

Nicky nudges him back, his smile broadening. 

Feeling a dull pain in her chest, Nile looks away. She wonders how many times they’ve already been through this, and how many times may still lie ahead of them. She can feel a deep furrow forming between her brows, and she tries to smoothen it out before she looks at Andy. “Nothing,” she says. “I went back to sleep as well, soon after you did.”

“It’s called reclamation,” Andy says, nodding towards Nicky and Joe. “What they did. They’re good now.”

“Yeah,” Nile replies, her voice hoarse with pain. “Maybe. For now.”

Andy nods. “Are you ready to leave?”

Joe and Nicky walk past them towards the exit of the cave. They’re talking to each other in soft, hushed voices. 

While they walk out of the cave side by side, their hands find each other, and their fingers interlace. 

~fin~

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [sal-si-puedes](https://sal-si-puedes.tumblr.com/) on tumblr - come and say "Hi!"!


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